To truly understand
the brilliance behind the lyrics of the Cave by the folk band Mumford and
Son’s, the listener must be familiar with Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. In
Plato’s allegory there are a group of prisoners bound by their legs and are
forced to be chained to the ground as they face a wall. As the prisoners face
the wall they see shadows projected by a flame burning behind them. These
shadows (being the only thing the prisoners have seen) becomes their reality.
They are forced day and night for their entire lives to stare at these shadows
and they become their only glimpse of the world. They are essentially unaware;
naïve to the world that truly surrounds them. One day one of the prisoners are
released and allowed to stand up and leave the cave. The prisoner emerges from
the cave and sees the sun and the surrounding world. Out of excitement he
returns to the other prisoners and tells them about the world outside the cave.
Yet, when he tells them about the world outside the other prisoners do not believe
him and ignore his discovery as they are stubborn, naïve, and unwilling to
accept anything beyond what they already know.
Mumford is well-known for incorporating their knowledge of
literature into their music to help convey their themes they present. In the
Cave the story being told is describing the difficulties and faults of two
lovers trapped in their relationship due to one partner’s unwillingness to
abandon her pride for the sake of their relationship. The opener describes one
lover that continually avoids the sun as it rises behind her. The sun is a
representation of knowledge in both the son and Plato’s writing and the lover
is avoiding this knowledge. The speaking lover states later on in the song that
he finds strength in pain and that he will not let his lover choke on a noose
that she is hanging from. This provides a metaphor for the relationship between
the two of them. The speaker’s lover is prideful and unwilling to accept the
mistakes that she has made in the relationship with him. Yet, the speaker has
seen beyond the problems and the “reality” that the two of them have had in
their relationship and wants to make progress. He wants to leave behind their old
ways and attempt to fix their issues. Yet, unless she is willing to put her
pride aside and admit her mistakes, nothing can be done to fix their relationship.
The song is about searching for truth and putting aside pride in order to truly
understand love.
It's empty in the valley
of your heart
The sun, it rises slowly
as you walk
Away from all the fears
And all the faults you've
left behind
The harvest left no food
for you to eat
You cannibal, you
meat-eater, you see
But I have seen the same
I know the shame in your
defeat
But I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your
neck
And I'll find strength in
pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's
called again
Cause I have other things
to fill my time
You take what is yours
and I'll take mine
Now let me at the truth
Which will refresh my
broken mind
So tie me to a post and
block my ears
I can see widows and
orphans through my tears
I know my call despite my
faults
And despite my growing
fears
But I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your
neck
And I'll find strength in
pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's
called again
So come out of your cave
walking on your hands
And see the world hanging
upside down
You can understand
dependence
When you know the maker's
land
So make your siren's call
And sing all you want
I will not hear what you
have to say
Cause I need freedom now
And I need to know how
To live my life as it's
meant to be
And I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your
neck
And I'll find strength in
pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's
called again
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